My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 310 I don't want money, I only want food!

If they really try to steal someone, they won't be able to come the next day.

In the end, it will only be these ordinary people who starve to death.

In addition, once these peasant soldiers return to Li Zicheng's camp, they will surely spread the news widely, which will affect the morale of Li Zicheng's army.

It was precisely because of these two points that the two sides had been able to coexist peacefully. Whenever any peasant soldiers from the opposite side came over, the garrison at Tongguan would provide them with a bowl of porridge.

If he's lucky, he might be able to rush straight into Tongguan City, which would be considered a surrender.

As for those who were unlucky enough to be killed at Tongguan Pass, well, that's just their bad luck.
The scene shifts to Li Zicheng's camp on the other side.

At this moment, Li Zicheng stood alone on a high ground, the biting cold wind cutting his face like sharp knives, but he was completely unaware.

Li Zicheng gazed at the vast expanse of heaven and earth, but the snowflakes dancing in the sky seemed to be a reflection of his bewildered state of mind at that moment.

For a moment, he couldn't help but feel a little sad.

Li Zicheng was completely baffled as to what was going on. Just a year ago, his army had grown exponentially larger, like a snowball rolling downhill, with an momentum that seemed poised to destroy the Ming Dynasty, as if the Ming Dynasty was about to collapse under his onslaught.

At that time, his camp was filled with rebels from all over the country who came to join him every day. His soldiers were in high spirits and their fighting power was unmatched!

But suddenly, no one knows what happened in the Ming Dynasty, and this situation suddenly disappeared.

The imperial army actually defeated the arrogant Jurchens in Liaodong, and even killed 110,000 Jurchen soldiers.

In addition, the imperial court reformed the tax system, which resulted in the national treasury, which had previously been extremely poor, suddenly becoming wealthy again.

And just recently, he heard that the imperial court had achieved a great victory in Mongolia and even expanded its territory.

To Li Zicheng, these events were nothing short of devastating news.

After all, the stronger the Ming Dynasty became, the more dangerous his situation became. Right now, Li Zicheng suddenly felt like a wild beast walking on the edge of a cliff, and he could fall into an abyss at any moment.

This has led to Li Zicheng now being unsure of what to do in the future.

Should we really surrender to the imperial court?

Li Zicheng was extremely unwilling, because he knew that others might have a way out if they surrendered, but for him, Li Zicheng, there was absolutely no way out.

Putting everything else aside, the members of the imperial family he killed were all of the bloodline of the Ming Dynasty's royal family!

Even if the emperor doesn't kill him, the princes and nobles of the imperial family across the land will probably do everything they can to put him to death!

Therefore, surrendering is not an option; he has no choice but to go down this path to the bitter end!

Thinking of this, Li Zicheng sighed again, the sigh carrying a particularly heavy sound in the cold wind.

Suddenly, at that moment, five fast horses came galloping towards them like arrows released from a bow.

The snow kicked up by the horse's hooves, like white smoke, spread out behind them, forming hazy trails.

Li Zicheng was unaware of what had happened, but a sense of foreboding welled up within him.

He frowned slightly, a hint of worry flashing in his deep, single eye, before turning around and walking steadily down the hillside.

When he returned to his tent, the five scouts he had seen earlier had already entered the tent.

Upon seeing Li Zicheng, they quickly knelt on one knee, clasped their hands in a fist salute, and said:

"Reporting to the King, our subordinates recently discovered a force of approximately five thousand men escorting some boxes in the Shanxi direction. We don't know what's inside, but their destination is Tongguan!"

Although Li Zicheng was trapped in Henan, he always sent people to closely monitor the surrounding area within hundreds of miles.

It was clear that this group of scouts had come back from the direction of Shanxi.

But Li Zicheng didn't pay much attention to this at first, thinking that these things should be military funds transported by the imperial court.

In the past, he might have had some interest in these military pays, since military pay is the foundation of an army's survival. With military pay, he could recruit soldiers, expand his strength, and make his peasant army grow stronger in this chaotic world.

But now, this thing is useless to him; all he wants is food!

Although you can buy grain with money, there's no one left in Henan right now. Even if you have money, you can't find anyone to buy it from!
Thinking of this, Li Zicheng shook his head helplessly and then said:

"The only things that can be packed in boxes are military pay. These things are of no use to us. Even if we had money, we couldn't buy food now."

His tone was full of helplessness and disappointment.

The scout who came to deliver the message could say nothing more after hearing this, and could only stand silently to the side with his head down, not daring to look Li Zicheng in the eye.

Luo Rucai, on the other hand, frowned slightly, as if he was thinking about something important.

After a moment, Luo Ru suddenly asked:

Where is this army now?

Upon hearing this, the scout quickly replied:

"Before we came back, we saw more than 10,000 garrison troops coming out to meet us from the direction of Tongguan. They have probably entered Tongguan City by now."

Upon hearing this, Luo Rucai couldn't help but frown.
He suddenly realized that this matter might not be simple, and that what was being transported was probably not military pay.

Just then, the tent flap was suddenly lifted, bringing in a flurry of snowflakes. The snowflakes danced around inside the tent a few times before settling to the ground.

Immediately afterwards, a figure appeared in front of everyone.

This person was none other than Li Guo.

Although Li Guo was Li Zicheng's nephew, they still maintained the etiquette between ruler and subject in front of outsiders.

So the next second, Li Guo hurriedly knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist and said:

"This humble general pays his respects to King Chuang."

Li Zicheng smiled slightly, then quickly said:

"Get up quickly."

After Li Guo stood up, Li Zicheng finally spoke and asked:
"How is it? Is everything alright today?"

Clearly, Li Zicheng was asking whether any peasant armies had fled into Tongguan City that day.

This was one of his biggest concerns, after all, the stability of the peasant army was related to his great cause!

Li Guo then clasped his hands in greeting and replied:
"Rest assured, Your Majesty, everything is normal today."

Li Zicheng breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

He then nodded slightly, a relieved smile appearing on his face, and inwardly sighed:

As expected, my own nephew is the most reliable!
But thinking about it, it makes sense. If he can't even rely on his own nephew, then he can't count on anyone else either.

In this chaotic world, there are so few people you can trust!
Suddenly at that moment, Li Guo said again:
"By the way, King Chuang, something strange happened in Tongguan City today." Strange?

Li Zicheng was curious upon hearing this, but still asked:
"whats the matter?"

Li Guo continued:

"For some reason, there seem to be twice as many guards on Tongguan today. Even the guards inside the city have started to move towards the city gate, as if they are on guard against something."

"This humble general feels that something is amiss, so I thought I'd inform the King of Chuang!"

Upon hearing this, Li Zicheng felt even more puzzled.

Because he also couldn't understand what Sun Chuanting meant.
Upon hearing this, Luo Rucai, who was standing to the side, and recalling the information that the scouts had gathered earlier, suddenly became even more nervous.

Then he couldn't help but look at Li Zicheng and say:
"Chuang Wang, in my opinion, the increase in the city's garrison and the 5,000-man supply convoy are likely related to the same thing. I'm afraid the imperial court isn't bringing military pay or grain this time."

His tone was full of worry, as if he had already sensed the impending danger.

However, Li Zicheng was puzzled when he heard this.

If it's not military pay, and it's not food, then what could it be?
The others inside the tent also looked bewildered.

Just then, Luo Rucai was suddenly startled and thought of the Ming army's firearms from before.

He had witnessed the power of the Ming army's firearms firsthand; they were a nightmare on the battlefield.

Once the thought crossed his mind, it grew stronger and stronger. He felt that he might have guessed right!
The Ming army most likely brought the same new type of firearms as before.

After all, everyone knows that Li Zicheng could not truly surrender to the court, and there would always be a war between him and the court, so the Ming army would definitely continue to increase its strength.

And this new type of firearm is the key to their increased strength!

If that's the case, then how should this war be fought in the future?
Just then, Li Zicheng, who was standing to the side, seemed to notice something and asked:
"What's wrong, strategist? Has something come to mind?"

Upon hearing this, Luo Rucai instantly snapped out of his daze, then gave an awkward laugh and said:
"No, I can't think of what's being transported here right now. Maybe it really is military pay."

Luo Rucai did not want Li Zicheng to know his speculation too early, so as not to cause unnecessary panic.

He knew that at this critical moment, maintaining morale was of utmost importance. If everyone learned that the imperial court might have brought in the same powerful firearms as before, it could cause unrest and affect their morale.

Fortunately, Li Zicheng didn't seem to care much about the matter. He said a few more words and then dismissed everyone.

Time flies, and before we knew it, it was evening.

Night fell like a giant black curtain, slowly enveloping the entire earth.

Inside the camp, the campfire roared and crackled, sparks dancing in the night sky before soon disappearing into the distance.

The heavy snow stopped at some point, but the weather remained bitterly cold.

On the other side, Luo Rucai was drinking alone in his tent, feeling utterly bored.

The cold wind outside the tent was biting, like a pack of ferocious wild beasts, occasionally pushing the tent and making a "whooshing" sound.
Luo Rucai wrapped his cotton coat tighter around himself, but still felt incredibly cold.

He sat at the table, watching the flickering candlelight struggle in the cold wind, sometimes bright, sometimes dim, as if it might go out at any moment.

For a moment, Luo Rucai felt extremely depressed, and that depression surged in his heart like a tide.

He now increasingly feels that joining forces with Li Zicheng was a mistake!

If he had led his troops to wander outside for a few months and then waited for the imperial edict to surrender, and then surrendered to the court with his troops, he would be at least a commander now!
Even if we were to go to Liaodong, it would be much better than what we are doing now!
After all, he was just a strategist under Li Zicheng at the moment.

There's no future in sight, no wealth or glory to be had; all they have is a life of constantly risking their lives.

I live in constant fear, never knowing when I might lose my life!

Thinking of this, Luo Rucai sighed again.

To be honest, he really didn't want to follow Li Zicheng anymore; he was fed up with that kind of life.

Suddenly, a sound came from outside the tent, which was particularly clear in the quiet night.

Then came a sound.

"Yuan Dafu, what brings you here so late?"

"Hey, I was just bored, so I came to have a few drinks with Mr. Luo. How about you two brothers join me for a drink?"

"No, no, we still have to be on duty, we can't drink alcohol, you guys go ahead and drink."

Not long after, the tent flap was lifted, and a person walked in.

This person was none other than Yuan Dafu, a military officer who had previously served under Luo Rucai.

However, when Luo Rucai surrendered to Li Zicheng, Li Zicheng incorporated Luo Rucai's troops into his own forces, and Yuan Dafu was also incorporated into other peasant army units.

Even so, he often came to drink with Luo Rucai, and Li Zicheng did not stop him.

After all, they have already voluntarily handed over all their troops. If you were to forbid them from drinking with their former subordinates, that would be too inhumane.

Despite this, Li Zicheng still kept a close watch on Luo Rucai's every move, including the soldiers guarding outside the tent, who were all personally sent by Li Zicheng.

Getting back to the main point, upon seeing that the visitor was Yuan Dafu, Luo Rucai quickly invited him to sit down.

"Brother Yuan, please have a seat."

Yuan Dafu sat down with a smile, and then, as if by magic, pulled out a roast chicken from behind him and placed it on the table.

The roast chicken was golden brown, glistening with oil, and emitted an enticing aroma that made one's mouth water.

Then, while refilling Luo Rucai's wine, Yuan Dafu said with a smile:
"I went to great lengths to get this chicken; once it's gone, it won't be available tomorrow."

As he spoke, he tore off a chicken leg and handed it to Luo Rucai.

Luo Rucai didn't stand on ceremony and took the chicken leg, but the next second he realized something was wrong.

There was a small note hidden inside the chicken leg, so subtle that it was easy to miss if you didn't look closely.

Luo Rucai's hand trembled slightly, and a sense of doubt and unease welled up in his heart.

He then looked at Yuan Dafu with surprise, his eyes filled with doubt and confusion, as if asking:
How is this going?

But Yuan Dafu merely gave him a subtle wink, then said loudly:
"Eat up, eat up, don't be shy with your brother."

That look was clearly a subtle hint to Luo Rucai not to make a fuss.

Luo Rucai instantly understood that Yuan Dafu had something to say to him, but it was inconvenient to speak with so many people watching, so he could only pass the message on a note.

(End of this chapter)